Hearts Of Darkness
by minasnowdrop82
Summary: Tsubasa is been unable to shake the memory of Ryuga defeated him at Battle Bladers, and now the darkness inside his body. A sudden, unprovoked attack on Tsubasa's life heralds the start of a full-scale mob war, which has clearly been orchestrated by some outside force. The botched attempt opens the door for the light.
1. Prologue

**Hi there, it's Mina Snowdrop. Now my exams is over, Let's begin my fanfic called 'Hearts Of Darkness'. Enjoy.**

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In a past life Tsubasa was a blader. Before his life fell to pieces he was a blader, and a good one too. It's tough to really say what makes a calm blader "awesome" at what they do, but he started in his field early, got great experience his first few years in training and not before long he almost had more clients than Tsubasa could handle. He is not saying someone would challenge him to the beybattle and do a complete 180 in one day, but his friend trusted him and felt that he genuinely helped them, so he came very highly recommended, and his rate was admittedly steep. That being said, he was used to a "higher tier" of patient.

He is not sure how Gingka and his friends found him but he assume Yu was pointed in his direction from their good friend, as that's sometimes the case. Someone walks through your door that you're incapable of helping for whatever reason so you make some recommendations.

Tsubasa loves the nature, it makes him even calmer and relaxed. He watched a breathtaking view of the lake with birds singing sweetly, which is like music to his ears. An eagle was his partner, he opened the window and took deep breath.

The air smelled like a flower, the scent doing absolutely everything to fresh it up. Tsubasa felt something near as alert as he needed to be. Tsubasa wondered if he could wash away the feelings of fatigue and lethargy with his heart that had left a thin film of regret on the inside of his body.

He stared at the green trees, my vision blurring as he let my eyes focus on something off in the corner of the room. There wasn't anything there, just shadow and wood walls, but he'd grown weary of watching the embers of the fire in his hearth die out.

The soft bed Tsubasa lay in sighed every few seconds, even though he remained as still as they dry, spring air outside. When suddenly, he got a strange feeling. Not so much a pain, but… a very strange feeling. He dismissed it as just some random that he have ever felt.

Tsubasa opened his eyes slowly, and he is in the bedroom of B-pit, doing his meditation. It's looks like the nature has disappeared. He sat up from the bed, pulling his cell phone out of his pocket as he rose. He approached the fireplace while dialing a number with his thumb, his opposite hand working on dousing the faint, amber glow that still burned on within the fireplace's stone confines.

The phone presented him with a dial tone that rang only twice before the agitated voice of a woman replaced the harsh sound.

"Hikaru Hasuma, WBBA Headquarters," Hikaru said.

"Good morning, Hikaru," Tsubasa said. "It's Tsubasa. You're aware that I'm not going to be in for the next few days?" Tsubasa asked.

"Of course, Tsubasa," she responded. Her tone was clipped with supressed annoyance, so Tsubasa quickly decided to end the call before she chose to vent her anger out on me.

"All right then," Tsubasa said, walking towards the door, "that'll be all. See ya, Hikaru."

He hung up, and pocketed his phone as he pulled out his bey, Earth smiled, Eagle was his partner, it always being his friend and always being his brother.

Downstairs, Sierra made some toasted sandwiches while Masamune is eating his breakfast. "Jesus Christ, Masamune, you know I have to fucking work tonight." Sierra said. "Somebody around here has got to make some money."

"I'm all broken up here, Era. I can't work." Masamune said.

"Yeah, and whose fault is that?"

"Fuck you."

"Oh, my God, you're pathetic." Sierra scoffed.

"You know that new waitress over at the Bingo Lounge?" Masamune asked. "She's been giving me the freaky eye."

"Oh, the girl with the skirt hanging down to her knees?" Sierra said.

"Maybe I'll choke the chicken, purge my snorkel all over them flappy-ass skirt." Masamune said as he drank a glass of orange juice.

"Good. Well, have a good fucking time." Sierra said.

"I will." Masamune said.

"I hope she likes cripples." Sierra smirked.

"Bitch, I will crawl over there, and I will skull fuck the shit outta you!" Masamune spat furiously.

"Oh, I'll get the crutches for you." Sierra said as Baby Camille started to cry loudly.

Sierra sighed in frustration and she picked Baby Camille. "See what you did? Fucking loudmouth."

"Waah! Waah! That's all that fucker does is cry. Waah! Waah!" Masamune mocked. "Cry and shit. Cry and shit."

"Just like you. That's all you do is cry and shit." Sierra said as she rocking Baby Camille up and down.

"Fuck you and set it on my pole right now, bitch." Masamune said.

"Fuck off."

Gingka walked in the B-pit. "Morning, Madoka!"

"Good morning, Gingka." Madoka said, smiling.

"Is Pegasus fixed yet?" Gingka asked excitedly.

"Yep. It's like good as new." Madoka gave Galaxy Pegasus to Gingka.

"Alright! Thanks, Madoka!" Gingka said cheerfully.

"Anytime." Madoka giggled.

Kenta, Riku, Amber and Killua walked in the B-pit.

"Morning." Killua said.

"Morning, Madoka." Kenta and Amber said.

"Morning, guys." Riku said.

"I know that you all excited. So, your beys are ready!" Madoka pulled out Flame Sagittario, Suicune, Raikou and Kyurem.

"Wow, Madoka!" Kenta exclaimed.

"Oh my god!" Amber said.

"Thanks." Riku said.

"Awesome!" Killua exclaimed.

Benkei, Yu and Leo walked in the B-pit at the same time. "Madoka!"

Madoka chuckled. "Okay. Calm down. your beys are officially ready." She pulled out Dark Bull, Flame Libra and Simba.

"Awesome!" Yu laughed in hyper.

"B-b-b-bull! Thanks, Madoka! You are the best!" Benkei gave her a bear hug.

"you're... squeezing... too hard... " Madoka had gained her breath and Everyone laughed.

"Is mine ready now?" Sierra asked, smiling.

"Yep. All required." Madoka said and pulled out Earth Thunder Angel.

"Thank you, Madoka!" Sierra said cheerfully as she bounced up and down with joy.

Leo is about get the pancakes, but Masamune took a plate of pancakes. "Madoka?"

Masamune slightly slid the pancakes to him.

"How about some eggs and bacon?" Madoka asked.

"No thanks. I'll pass." Leo said.

"Since when?" Gingka asked.

"Since now." Leo replied casually. "They're chicken abortions, and they're fucking gross."

"They are not chicken abortions." Gingka said.

"Like you know what an abortion is." Leo put the syrup on his pancakes.

"You know what, can you please go upstairs and get Tsubasa?"

"Why do I always have to do it?"

"Just do it already!" Yu shouted.

Leo rolled his eyes at him and went upstairs.

"Don't you give me that look!" Riku said.

"Man, that SOB got her a nice little dumper." Masamune teased.

Sierra snapped and blushed. "What did you just say?"

"You heard me."

"No, say it again, Big Shot! Say it to my face!"

"Oh, what's the matter? You jealous of your own boyfriend's ass?" Masamune snickered.

"Fucking pig." Sierra threw a hot chocolate at Masamune.

Masamune screamed. "You fucking whore!" he trashed the food off the table. Camille cried and wailed again.

"All right, now clean it up! Go on."

"I'm not gonna do this anymore!"

Leo walked towards the door. "Tsubasa." He knocked the door. "Stop jerking off in there."

"I'm busy!" Tsubasa said.

"Hey! Get your ass downstairs and wash your hands, you little shit." Leo yelled.

Tsubasa looked in the mirror, his eyes glowing red. "I am not listening!" he screamed in insanity.

"Let me tell you something. That guy, he needs some serious discipline. I mean, he runs around like a little bitch." Masamune said.

"What don't you just leave him alone keep your hands off him?" Yu asked with a face serious.

"Give me a break."

"He's probably a queer. He's gonna grow up, end up cutting his dick and balls off and changing his name to Terrell."

Leo and Tsubasa walked back to the kitchen.

"There he is. Good morning, Terrell, ma belle." Masamune joked.

"What took you guys so long, Tsubasa?" Gingka asked.

"I had a bad headache, that's all." Tsubasa replied.

"Oh, Tsubasa, I'm sorry. We'll get you a medication, okay?" Madoka smiled.

"Okay. Thanks, Madoka." Tsubasa smiled back. He looked at the cute and beautiful baby. She looks beautiful like a princess. "Good Morning, Camillia."

"'Good Morning, Camillia.'" Leo mocked as Tsubasa sat on the chair against the table.

"Face me." Leo said. He yanked Tsubasa's hair. "You are starting to annoy me."

"I hate you." Tsubasa said as he stared at Leo.

"And I hate you, too. You see this? As soon as this heals, I'm gonna break it again on your fucking face!" Leo threatened.

"That's enough, all right? Can we just eat in peace for once?" Gingka asked, getting annoyed.

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 **Up next: Chapter 2. If you like this chapter, please review.**


	2. What Happened To Me?

**Hey guys! I'm back from school. Let's move on to Chapter 2.**

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Tsubasa had an incredibly interesting conversation today with Yu, Gingka, Madoka, Kenta, Amber and Riku. He do not know what to make of it, but what he do know is that our foundation has cracked, whether they knows it or not. It was one of those conversations that make you question everything you think you know… about everything.

As he enjoyed a beautiful view after he and Yu had beyblade battle, they sat across from each other on the grass at the park when Riku started the following conversation:

"Did you know I used to live here many years ago?"

"Did you now?" Amber answered, with a smirk knowing she was about to hear some fantastical story.

"Yeah. I used to play with my brother in that park across the street. He loved to swing on the tire rope hanging from that huge tree."

"So you had a brother?" Gingka asked.

"Yeah. He's a lot older now but I saw him this morning for the first time in a very long time, right there in that park."

"I don't remember seeing you talk to anyone." Madoka said.

"You must have been talking to Kyoya. I would have let you say 'hi' but he is still very angry with me."

"Why would he be angry with you? You are the sweetest guy I know!" Amber said sweetly.

"Well the last time I saw him, he had a knife to my throat."

At this point Gingka stood up. "Riku, you had a brother you never told us about and the last time you saw Kyoya he had a knife to your throat? I've seen you almost every day for the last four years and you never mentioned this to me."

"I never thought I had to, but when I saw him today it reminded me."

"Reminded you of what exactly?" Amber curtly asked.

"Just that I saw him and that the last time I did, we were here in this room. It was many years ago."

"Wait, you lived here many years ago? What do you mean?" Gingka asked.

"Yeah, many years ago, when I was older. Me, Antonio, Nina and Stacey lived here. Nina read the book about the life and death of Carol Cohen."

"Who is Carol Cohen?" Tsubasa questioned, starting to get a bit uncomfortable with each parlay of the conversation.

"That kid from long ago is an urban legend! I haven't seen her since I last saw him. Always wished I'd see her again. Marianne Cohen and I actually met at the old creek right up Anderson Road."

That creek had not been around for over 40 years, there is no way he would have known about it had he not lived here. Utterly baffled at that point, Tsubasa pressed on with the talk since it was completely unexpected and compelling all the same, "Where is she?"

"Oh, I don't know. In heaven I guess."

"That poor little girl, she died?" Madoka asked sadly.

"Well yeah, The demon cut her and she was breathing quietly but I couldn't wake her up. He cut her right there where you guys are sitting."

Tsubasa's plastic cup of apple juice almost slipped out of his hand at the shock of the comment. It spilled slightly as he went to catch it, splattering across the striped carpet.

"Looked a lot like that actually," he noted, unaffected.

"I hate to admit it, but you're starting to scare us." Kenta said.

"Heh heh. Sorry. I wanted you guys to know, since I saw him again today and all. He is just so angry. I don't know why he is so angry. Didn't know why back then either. Last thing he said today was that he was coming back here tomorrow night." Riku laughed.

"Okay, you can stop making up this story now. It's not amusing anymore. You are really starting to scare us." Madoka said.

"It's okay, I'm scared too. I don't think he is coming to see you guys. He knows I'm here though so he will probably come see me again. Seeing him with the knife was the last thing I remember before showing up here with you guys and…"

Suddenly, Tsubasa closed his eyes slowly, but the darkness put its hand on his shoulders and he let out a scream in panic with his wide eyes opened. Gingka and the others looked at him, terrified. "Tsubasa, what's the matter? Why were you screaming!" Yu asked as he grabbed Tsubasa's shoulders to console him.

"Oh thank god it was just you!" Tsubasa sighed and laughed.

"You scared me half to death!" Gingka shouted.

As They sat up and Madoka tried putting the rest of the plastic plates and cups away, Amber picked the rubbish and taking it to the bin and Riku grabbed some paper towels to assist her. "We was having a very odd conversation with our Mr. Junior here. He was telling us about how, in a previous life, she was married once and had a child here in this house many years ago. And he was also telling us how the demon killed her daughter with a knife. Even Gingka's rival had a knife to his throat at one point."

"Oh is that so, Junior?" Riku asked half-heartedly, looking over to find Tsubasa staring at them with a blank, blink-less expression.

"He said he was coming tomorrow night," Tsubasa mumbled, almost in a whisper, as he pointed to the woods.

His neck whipped around so fast he thought it was going to rip right off my shoulders. As he peered, Gingka called out to Tsubasa exasperated but relieved, "But Tsubasa, there is no one there!"

Overall, the site was very remote, and the only things you could hear were the peeping frogs, and the sound of wind hitting the branches of trees. Madoka and Amber hopped out of the truck, set our things inside the lean-to, and hung our bear bag in a nearby tree. Clouds were coming into the sky, and the sun was now barely glowing through them.

"Dude, check this out," Riku said, having strayed off to the perimeter of the park.

"What is it?" Gingka asked.

"I think it's a trail or something," he replied, pointing to what appeared to be a narrow, seemingly forgotten stretch of trail that extended into the forest. An old sign with the paint chipping off of it was sitting in front of the trailhead. Gingka crouched down to see if he could read the sign, and Riku pointed the flashlight towards it. Tsubasa could barely make out the words "Thirteen" as he slowly deciphered the carved letters.

Curious, Riku and Gingka made our way down the thin trail, pushing through the brush. The ground soon became saturated with water, and Tsubasa could barely make out the extensive meadow of sedges through the trees and darkness. The evening wind seemed to be swaying them back and forth, a motion that he found almost hypnotic. "Look at that," Tsubasa said to Yu, noticing the sheer size of the bog. It seemed to extend far into the distance on all sides, creating a sort of aquatic prairie.

The trail ended at what appeared to be an old, rotting dock. It jutted out into a small pond, which paved through the center of the bog, getting narrower as it went deeper into the wetland. Madoka shined her flashlight around the area, trying to get some kind of perspective over the landscape.

"I don't think I've seen anything like this before," She told him,"It's huge."

"I know, "Tsubasa replied, staring out into the distance. He felt oddly drawn to this area. Something about it had struck him. The way the sedges moved with the wind, and how the black, calm waters sat stagnant in the dark created an interesting feeling inside of him. He didn't know if it was curiosity, fear, or even a sense of inner peace, but it felt as if the landscape was drawing him into itself. Tsubasa squinted his eyes, trying to take in every detail of his surroundings. As he turned his head, he noticed something odd in the distant sedges. Something was rustling around, and for a split second, he saw what appeared to be a black figure rise up from the grass. Immediately, he blinked, and the hazy figure disappeared. he attributed this only to the darkness playing tricks on him, not thinking much of it.

"Hey, Tsubasa, are you OK?" Gingka asked, noticing that Tsubasa was staring off into space.

"Yes, yes I'm fine," Tsubasa replied, waking up from his daze, brushing off the illusion he had just seen.

"You wanna walk out with us? The wood's pretty calm, and we'd like to explore a little bit." Kenta asked.

Tsubasa hesitated at first, the image of the dark figure briefly resurfacing in his mind, but he again dismissed it. "Sure," Tsubasa replied, a sense of excitement overtaking what had originally been more comparable to dread.

It was around six o'clock at night when Gingka, Kenta, Riku and Tsubasa set off into the stagnant, the woods of the bog. They had attached the flashlight to the bow of his bag with a lashing, and it illuminated a good chunk of the landscape as they began rowing. Tsubasa was walking slowly behind Kenta, steering, while Riku looked at the tall trees, leading the way through the darkening landscape. For a wetland, it was oddly silent as they walked deeper into the open, narrowing pond. The peeping frogs they had heard before now remained quiet, and the slight wind silently brushed over the sedges. The only audible sounds were their foot breaching the surface of the grass. An odd, uneasy feeling began to surge through his body, sending a shiver through his spine, but at the same time, Tsubasa couldn't help but admire his eerie surroundings. Kenta seemed unaffected, occasionally running his hand through the water.

Not much longer after they set off, they approached what at first appeared to be a wall of sedges. After getting closer with the flashlight, they soon realized that the woods separated into two, narrow paths, one to the left, and one to the right. "Which one do you want to take?" Tsubasa asked his friends.

"Are you sure we should go on?" Gingka replied, having taken on a more cautious approach to their excursion. "I mean, it's getting pretty dark, and we left Madoka, Amber and Yu alone in the park. I want to make sure they haven't been raided by anything."

Tsubasa took note of Gingka's concerns, but conflicting feelings in his mind began to surface once more. An unexplainable urge to keep going took hold, and he responded to my friend in a calm and collected fashion. "They're fine, Gingka. I made sure they were went back to the B-pit right way, and everything else is still locked in the car. And I just put new batteries in the flashlight, so there's no need to worry about anything."

He nodded considering what Tsubasa had to say. "Right, let's take the left," he responded after a bit of hesitation. His originally explorative nature seemed to be faltering somewhat, but not to the point where Tsubasa was concerned. As they began to paddle again, he looked back in the direction we came. A dense fog was swallowing the landscape, obscuring his vision. Tsubasa said nothing to his friends, even sensing himself smile at the mist, not understanding why.

They continued walking into the left passage, bumping into the wall of sedges as they entered. Our canoe had difficulty navigating through the constant twists and turns, their shoes ends constantly bumping into the grass and mud. Kenta would constantly stop walking and look around, his silence unnerving them even more. He hadn't spoken ever since Gingka and Riku stopped to decide which way to go. The fog was beginning to overtake them, and Gingka had taken notice.

"Tsubasa," Gingka said, turning around towards Tsubasa, "Tsubasa, we need to turn around, okay? I can't see anything, and it's going to be difficult getting back. Come on, let's go back. Madoka is getting worried about us. You take the bow end and I'll take the stern."

Tsubasa looked at him silently, the urge to move on now flaring in his body. It was as if the surreal bog landscape was getting to his head, to a point where his actions were becoming uncontrollable. Frustration took hold of his mind. "We're fine, alright?" Tsubasa said, trying to keep his agitation to a minimum. "Let's just keep going, okay?"

An angered look took over Riku's face. "Are you fucking kidding me right now?! Tsubasa, we can't see five feet in front of us, and we've been moving through this goddamn channel for over forty minutes now! We're going back, now!"

Tsubasa stared at them, a crooked smile forming over his face. They didn't understand. "We're fine," Tsubasa said, almost casually.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Riku yelled, the echo resounding over the bog. "You've haven't said a word for the entire time we've been out here! And why are you smiling?!" He looked somewhat concerned about me, but Tsubasa's concern for him had been decreasing as they progressed through the bog. His only goal now was to press deeper into the foggy wetland.

"Tsubasa, let's go back, okay? We need to get some rest for tomorrow." Gingka said.

"No," Tsubasa replied almost immediately, his calm detached tone still present. He continued to stare at Riku in his frustration. He felt himself superior to Riku in some unexplainable way.

"For Christ's sake, Tsubasa, we need to-"

"No!" Tsubasa screamed in a demonic voice from his own. He casual tone had now turned into a deep, almost monstrous roar. Kenta looked absolutely horrified. His body had completely frozen, his eyes and mouth wide open.

"What… what's going on?" Kenta asked, his voice trembling. "What… what was that?"

Anger took over him like an ancient instinct, and he forcefully made his way to the front of the canoe, almost tipping it in the process. Riku grabbed on to the side of the canoe, leaning backwards as Tsubasa got right into his face. "We will keeping going," Tsubasa said to him threatendly in an agitated, raspy whisper, "and you will not get in my way. No one fucks with me! Got it?"

"What's happening to you?" Gingka asked, almost in tears as fear took over. "We're explore the Allagash tomorrow, Tsubasa. That's why we're here, remember?"

Tsubasa could feel the wind blowing faster through the ominous trees, the sedges silently bending back and forth. His rage of darkness was growing, and it was dismissing his past friendship with Gingka and his friends. They didn't understand, yet, at the same time, he didn't understand either. The surreal movements of the trees made it seem as though it were one living, breathing organism. It was enticing him further into its own mind, through its own meandering, confusing channels of thought.

Angered, Tsubasa almost lunged at Riku. He tried to tackle him, but as a result, Gingka forced Tsubasa onto the grass. It was much deeper than he had originally thought, the darkness going over his head. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion, his own body being submerged. Tsubasa remained there for what seemed like minutes, far longer than He could resist the pain. Tsubasa opened his glowing red eyes as he screamed, looking into the darkness's pitch black and purple inner body. The surface and the bottom were invisible, and it felt like He was being suspended in a state of nothingness.

Suddenly, the darkness ambience began to reassemble itself. Gradually, the sounds of moving darkness became almost silent whispers. They gradually grew louder and louder, and Tsubasa began to understand their messages. "Leave me alone," he muttered in chaotic intervals. "Do NOT fuck with me! I want you out! Get out... Get out... Get out... GET OUT NOW!" Distraught, uncanny wails soon arose from the depths. At first, they seemed inhuman, but as they got louder, they appeared to resemble the desperate cries of an infant and an eagle meshed together. These sounds pierced his mind, and Tsubasa could feel his thoughts begin to tear apart, my mind beginning to split into a thousand pieces. He was oddly intrigued by this experience, rather than fearful. The subterranean landscape was showing him sights he had never seen before, its disturbed, surreal mind inserting itself into his own. Images began to flood his head, millions passing through by the minute Cold, dead hands sticking out of the meadow of sedges, a child's deceased body decaying at the bottom of the bog, a deer struggling to make its way out of a muddy demise, those were some of the images I witnessed. The landscape was revealing its twisted worship of death and decay to him, a new knowledge that he claimed without question. "I WILL DESTROY YOU!," He screamed at Gingka and his friends. "EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING SHOULD JUST DISAPPEAR! DISAPPEAR NOW!"

A burning pain surged through his lungs, and Gingka quickly made for the surface, emerging right next to Riku. The fog was now dense, and Kenta could only see about five feet in front of him. To make matters worse, their flashlight had been swallowed by the darkness, their only light being what little moonlight shone through the mist. Gingka and his friends ran quickly and stepped back through the bog, however. Tsubasa needed to reach his unconscious destination.

Abruptly, he heard thrashing in the water, which was followed by the sounds of heavy breathing and bloodcurdling screams. They belonged to Ryuga, and he simply watched as he struggled to grab onto the surrounding sedges, completely disregarding the canoe.

"Stop it! Stop it, please!" Kenta cried. "What do you want from me?! What do you want from me!?" He fearfully scurried onto the meadow of sedges, his body soaked and shaking, his head darting in all directions.

"Tsubasa..." Gingka shuddered. "Go Pegasus!" He launched his bey and unleashed The Pegasus Mentor Shower Attack to get rid off the darkness. Gingka caught Pegasus into his hand.

"What's going on!?" Riku asked as he blinked. And then the darkness was gone, leaving Tsubasa with the bog's silence.

Tsubasa started to faint. "Tsubasa!" Gingka yelled. "They ran towards him, who lying on the grass unconsciously

"Are you OK?" Gingka asked in a panic. Tsubasa opened his eyes slowly.

"Wha..."

"Phew! I'm glad you're OK, buddy." Gingka said as he patted on Tsubasa's back.

Riku and Kenta helped Tsubasa up.

"Now can we go back?" Riku asked.

"Yeah."

Tsubasa coldly spoke, "He was standing behind us when he came in and he's there now. He is looking right at me."

He walked away, he saw nothing but the night in the distance and yet he felt everything from today's conversation; relieved it's not tomorrow but petrified that it will be.

It's been several hours since Gingka and his friends went back to the B-pit. Madoka decided to do some research. She found this article online: [The End Of The Beginning]

Like the Cohen family, they live on Staten road and tomorrow, She think they all are going to die.

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 **Woah! That's pretty freaky. Right? Up next: Chapter 3. If you like this chapter, please review.**


	3. Don't Wake Up

**Hey! Home from school. Get ready for the most haunting, scariest, terrorizing Chapter you ever seen!**

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There were too many doors in the upstairs hall. Tsubasa told his friends, but they couldn't see it. They told him not to worry. They told him there was nothing there. But there was an extra door at the end of the upstairs hall. An extra yellow door, and it didn't belong.

It was the color of disease, jaundiced and infected, with spidery black veins across its face. One perfect silver knob gleamed in its center above a shadowy keyhole, and it didn't look right. The doorknob shone with a mirror's finish, and caught the light from any angle, begging for Tsubasa to look its way. Tsubasa did his best to ignore it, but the door knew his name, and it whispered it when he drew near.

"Tsubasaaaa..." the door would rasp with a voice like dried leaves as tiny claws scraped against the other side. Tears would well in Tsubasa's eyes as he'd hurry past, his arms laden with everything he'd need to get ready for the day.

"Tsubasaaaa..." it would call again before he'd shuffled out of range and closed the bathroom door, cutting off its paper-thin wails. When he'd creep from the bathroom to head downstairs, the door's voice would follow him with a furious flurry of scraping claws and tormented howls. They lingered and gnawed in the back of his mind as he'd rush through breakfast so he could leave the house a few minutes sooner.

This place became a blessing, an excuse to be someone somewhere else. At the shed he could forget the door. At the shed he could pretend his house was like everyone else's, with the right number of doors and no eerie whispers. But at the end of the day it was still waiting for her at the end of the upstairs hall, with its mirror-ball knob and yellow face. He hated coming home and knowing it was there, but even more than that, he hated going to sleep, because in his dreams, he opened the door.

Every night, he stood before it, fighting the urge to reach out. Dread knotted his belly in anticipation of pain when his hand rose anyway to grasp the silver knob. Some nights it burned him like the driest ice. Other nights it seared like a red hot coal. Very occasionally, it did neither, instead turning and turning without ever opening the door, and he couldn't stop turning it until he woke up.

When the door did open, it revealed a swirling vortex of shadow and sound, with a thousand voices crying in the darkness. The voices curled around him, crawling through her hair like spiders. He thrashed and swatted at their skittering whispers, but the words still tingled across his skin.

He never should have listened.

"He sees..." they said. "He hears..." they moaned. "He hungers..." they wept, and burrowed in his mind like worms. "Ryuga, Ryuga," they echoed in his mind and screamed to him from the gaping vortex. "The Darkness . . . he hunts!"

Tsubasa shot up with a scream that night, gasping and sweating, but alone in the bed. The clock's crimson face said morning had passed, but not by much. Sun light enveloped the room, except where a vestigial nightlight illumined the corner by the desk; it wasn't much, but he felt better when he saw it.

He pulled the bedsheets over his head and pushed away the echoing voices. "I'm fine," he swore, hugging his knees and rocking. "It's just a dream. They're always dreams. The dreams will go away like they always do."

He started humming a song Sierra used to sing to her baby singer, small enough to need the nightlight, and the panic faded little by little with every note.

"Just a dream." He repeated. "Just a dream. Just a—"

"What's with you?" Someone asked from the hall.

Tsubasa froze.

"Are you OK?" It was the voice of a rival and not at all like the voice he usually heard the end of the hall with the door open.

"K-Kyoya?" Tsubasa whispered back from beneath the sheets.

"It's already noon and you still asleep?"

Tsubasa didn't move; he was terrified of leaving the safety of his net. As the moments ticked past, however, an anxious curiosity emboldened him enough to peek out from the covers. "It was... Kyoya," he thought. He sounded really serious as Tsubasa acting quite scared.

Tsubasa crawled from her bed clutching the sweat-damp night T shirt he'd worn to sleep, and waited. When nothing happened, he stood up and tip-toed toward Kyoya; toward the waiting lion, with the mirror-ball knob, on the wall at the end of the upstairs hall. When he stood before it, his stomach lurched, and for a moment he couldn't tell if he was going to vomit, or faint.

"Come on," Kyoya said when Tsubasa got close. "You look a little pale. "

Tsubasa opened his mouth to answer, and his voice was a calm of nothing. He took a deep breath, so he would forget about it.

"Yes," he finally managed. "...I'm fine."

"Really?" Kyoya asked as he stared at Tsubasa. He felt like he was want to know something what is going on with him.

Tsubasa sighed. "I just had a bad headache."

"And then what happened?"

"I had a bad dream. And... that was it."

"Hmph!" Kyoya closed his eyes as he crossed his arms.

"I have to go now. Please, excuse me." Tsubasa walked past Kyoya and went downstairs.

Later that night, The author man had completely lost control of the book. Part of him thought it was funny, but even so, Gingka and his friends had a hard time laughing. This whole thing had he worried. Killua wasn't sure why at the time, but maybe some part of him sensed that this was only the beginning of a much more enormous horror.

On the surface nothing was out of the ordinary to justify his unease. It was just his usual Friday night ritual. Dinner done, lights off in the livingroom, a bowl of popcorn, and the local news before watching a movie with Gingka and his friends. This was his comfort after a long, hard week of angry clients and angrier bosses. It was time to unwind.

Still, tonight it wasn't working. Tonight something felt off. Killua couldn't put his finger on what it was.

On the news tonight was the latest on a series of killings that had terrorized the city. People were being murdered in their own homes, with rarely any sign of struggle, and never a sign of a break in. They were just found gutted or stabbed or sliced up. The victim was almost always an adult, although there were a few children. Disappearances of other family members were common as well, but there didn't seem to be a consistent pattern.

The only clue left behind was a bit of residual chalk dust lightly powdered over all of the victims.

"This is a real death cult, alright? The next Charles Manson is out there turning people into murderers!" The shrill woman, I think her name was Gladys something, was a representative for a group called "Family Survivors of the Chalk Murders". They were a growing group.

She was debating someone who also had a family member that was recently killed. The guy's mother was butchered in her own kitchen. Even so, he was disagreeing with her. He was some kind of expert on cults, and said that none of it matched the patterns of behavior that these groups usually showed.

"Look, this doesn't fit with how cults do things. There are no messages left behind, nobody emptying their bank accounts or posting manifestos. None of the active cults in the area are taking responsibility, and believe me, they would if they could. I understand that you need to assign blame, to have someone that you can attack, but there are more important things! We need to stop looking for some cult leader and find the person or persons who are really doing this!"

He was making sense but… I don't know. Maybe he was the reason Kenta was feeling so uneasy. He was average looking, not really remarkable, but there was just something about him. It could have been that, even though he was yelling, he looked completely calm. His voice didn't match his face.

Finally the anchor broke in: "Kevin, thanks for that. I'm sorry but we're out of time, we have to move on."

Rick Warslen's face appeared on screen again as he shuffled papers dramatically and the graphic reading "Chalk Murders" appeared over his shoulder.

"Tonight's grizzly murder of Thomas Greetly brings the total number of Chalk Murders to 38. Greetly was found in his office by the cleaning staff this morning stabbed through the back of the neck repeatedly and coated with a fine layer of chalk dust. The city lives in fear as the number of murders seems to be increasing in frequency, with a murder every day for the past four days. Authorities have yet to comment on… I'm sorry… one moment…"

He seemed to be listening to someone off-screen. Riku, Gingka, Masamune and Killua had to laugh a bit. Kenta really did not have it together tonight and it seemed like the whole news broadcast was disorganized and amateurish.

"I see the four of you laughing at the depressing entertainment."

They was so startled they nearly jumped out of their skin. Kyoya was standing there next to them, backlit in the darkened room by the kitchen light. Weird that he startled them. Gingka and Kyoya have done the rivalry battle for 3 times now, and He is used to being able to hear him coming. Gingka must have been even more wrapped up in this news story than he thought.

"That's right! Don't laugh at him, he's just upset!"

"Yeah OK Benkei, I'll give the guy a break, his daughter having been killed and all. He's still a wreck though, really he should have taken more time off than just a month."

"Well, if I got all hacked up and chalk covered, would you go to training the next day?" Kyoya gave them his creepy, strange, you're-going-down and battle-me-now look. Gingka knew what that look meant. It meant he wasn't going to let me watch the news until he gave his some attention.

"Of course not man, I'd be a wreck for years!" He rolled his eyes and Killua smirked at him with just tough enough to make him feel like he wanted him, but not so much that Kyoya would get pumped up and want Gingka to battle. This way he can push Benkei away with an "Don't touch me!" and Killua can go back to the news. Works most of the time.

Rick Warslen had started up again. "… obtained exclusive closed circuit security footage of the murder of Thomas Greetly. Ladies and gentlemen, while this may be hard to watch, it will be important to identify the killer and for your own safety familiarize yourself with how these murders are being done. Children and those sensitive to violence should leave the room. The following footage is very shocking."

"Whoops, that's my cue to get out of the room," Riku said, "Really I have no idea how you can watch that!" He smiled and gave Kyoya a head shake of disapproval as he left. Riku was fearless as Gingka is, but as soon as anything the slightest bit scary comes on the TV he either runs away or makes Gingka change the channel. Killua haven't been able to watch a horror movie in peace in years.

Tsubasa walked into the living room.

"Hey Tsubasa! You've been sleeping awhile." Gingka greeted him.

"Oh. Sorry... Um... I maybe had a long dream." Tsubasa said with a hesitated smile.

The camera quality was pretty good for security footage; sharp and in full color. You could clearly see the rows of cubicles and into the glass office that Greetly was working in. It was late and he was the only person there. The lights were on in his office area, but the rest of the place was mostly in shadows.

Two people entered from the left. One was a guy with longish hair wearing a vest over a purple shirt with the sleeves rolled up. He had a pair of glasses that reflected the light from the office. The other person was an older lady in a shawl and drab looking dress.

When they entered his office Greetly looked up at them and leaned back. He seemed relaxed; not at all apprehensive about his guests. The old lady walked around the desk to stand next to Greetly while the guy in the shirt and vest stood back by the door.

The anchorman's voice cut in: "I've just been informed that the woman on screen has been identified as Greetly's mother, Mildred Greetly, an 86 year old pensioner. She… oh…"

He stopped talking when Greetly's mom pulled out the knife. It reflected the office lights brightly. She held it behind her son's back, and he never saw it coming when she drove it down into the back of this neck.

Tsubasa couldn't help but wince and jerk back from the TV. The utter brutality of it… she didn't even hesitate. She just pulled out the knife, positioned it in the air, and then put her whole body into the thrust. The force drove Greetly face-down onto the desk, but she wasn't done. As he went into spasms she wrenched the knife out and then drove it back in with both hands, leaning back to lift the knife as high as she could and then bending at the waist to make the most of each thrust. One, two, three, four… blood splattering up her arms, over her face, everywhere.

The worst part was her expression. That part turned my stomach. She was smiling this big false-toothy grin as she murdered her son.

The man she'd come in with made a slight motion, and she stopped and stood back. He approached the desk and lifted his hands to hover about a foot away from the dripping body, as if giving it a blessing or something. The picture warped then, bulging out unnaturally. It wasn't a digital interference but more like the lens was being twisted somehow. Then… everything went black.

After a few seconds Mark Warslen's face reappeared, shuffling papers with shaking hands and a drawn expression.

"Shocking footage of the murder of Thomas Greetly. We've been informed that Mildred Greetly has been taken into custody. We have… yes, OK… we do have footage of her being brought in for questioning. We take you live to the 9th precinct headquarters."

The camera cut to an outdoor scene. It was mayhem as a crowd of reporters was being held back by a few officers. The back door of a police car was being opened. The old lady was pulled out in handcuffs, blood still splattered across her face. No sign of the other guy.

She seemed calm despite the shouting from the reporters. She looked happy beneath the blood, as if all was right with the world and there was nothing to worry about.

A shout cut through the noise of the crowd: "How could you kill your own son?" She said something then, but it was hard to hear. It was something like: "There are more important things."

They led her to the door of the station and she seemed to be going peacefully, but then suddenly she straightened up, looked around until she spotted a camera, and stared into the lens.

"Heh heh! I'm kinda hungry." Gingka laughed as his stomach is grumbling. "Who wants the triple beef burgers? Beef burgers on me!"

"OK!" Kenta said as walked outside, following Gingka.

"B-B-B-Bull! I'm so starving!" Benkei ran to the front door.

"Sounds good to me." Riku laughed and walked off.

"Good luck guys." Killua scoffed as he walked off.

Kyoya and Tsubasa stared at each other, Tsubasa was confused.

"What's so important?" Tsubasa asked.

"Let me guess: You had a nightmare, right?" Kyoya said as he stood up.

"Yes... The darkness are coming inside me, and I can't get those voices out of my mind." Tsubasa said.

"It's Ryuga's power. I heard that Gingka started to worry about you." Kyoya said.

"..."

"Hey! Are you listening to me?" Kyoya snapped his fingers.

Tsubasa shook his head and sighed. "Sorry. I was just wondering about something."

"OK, I see what's going on with you. You were scared this time." Kyoya said as he crossed his arms.

Tsubasa blinked. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't act like you don't know!"

"I'm sorry but I can't tell you."

"Tsubasa, You have to tell me and you're going to tell me right now!" Kyoya demanded.

"No." Tsubasa said.

"Tell me or else!" Kyoya growled.

Tsubasa glanced as he sighed. "After I lost at the tournament, I got upset. The bladers laughed in the room. I opened the door to take look and I saw them talking something cruel and making fun of me, then my anger goes inside me, so I decided to destroy them... all of them..." he finished.

Kyoya smirked, this is starting to get interesting. "I see."

"So, what about you? You are might be afraid of anyone or anything." Tsubasa said.

Kyoya closed his eyes. "How smart are you to say that." He took a step forward and opened his eyes. "I was, but you're the one who's scared." He walked closer. "Cause I know trembling, I know your fears and I know what I feel your pain. " Tsubasa gave him the terrified look. "Wow, you're giving me a look. I thought you're a strong blader. But now, really? You're just a troubled little guy." He walked closer and closer and closer towards Tsubasa, who stared at him with his wide eyes open.

Tsubasa breathed heavily, he doesn't know what is got into him. "Kill him..." They whispered. Tsubasa gasped as he shivers. "Kill him... before he kills you..." He panted.

"What? Did I scared you a lot?" Kyoya smirked maliciously.

Tsubasa panted faster. "Take the knife..." He slowly looked over the knife on the table. "Go and take the knife..." Tsubasa tries to run to get the it, but Kyoya grabbed Tsubasa's arm.

"Trying to run away huh? Ha! Don't even try! I'm not going to let him go." Kyoya said. "So, I'm gonna give you... a little warning." He started whispering to his ear then: "They will consume you all! Every last one! You'll rot in the pit, and your presence will be made manifest!"

Tsubasa panted even more faster as he trembled uncontrollably, so Kyoya whispered to his ear some more: "They are your disciples, and they are everywhere! They're the people you've loved and trusted! And they will kill you, I promise! You will be fed to they that emerges!"

Tsubasa shut down his eyes as the darkness whispered to kill Kyoya.

Kill him...

Kill him...

Kill him...

Kill him...

Kill him...

Kill him..

Kill him...

Kill him...

Kill him...

Kill him...

Kill him...

Kill him, kill him, kill him, kill him, kill him, kill him, kill him, KILL HIM, KILL HIM KILL, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILLHIMKILLHIMKILLHIM

"RRRAAAAHHH!" Tsubasa screamed and grabbed the knife. The blade gashes Kyoya's right arms, pain shooting up his wrist. When Kyoya turn to look, Tsubasa is standing over him, tugging at the knife that has buried itself in the chair. He's got the anger inside.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Kyoya asked angrily. He doesn't even know Tsubasa seem upset that he accidentally hurt him. Tsubasa's fear at the man's presence hasn't left him, but he is more than confused at that moment at what he is trying to do.

Tsubasa pulls the blade out of the chair and winds up for another blow. Shock and surprised registered on Kyoya's face as he gurgled, blood hemorrhaging from that wound, staining his black t shirt with red hue of his life essence. Again and again that silver blade stuck out, Tsubasa's speed not restricted to his flying as he plunged that blade into the king of the beast before at rapid pace, sobbing hysterically as he carved the squirming and flailing Kyoya up. Through breast, through bone, Kyoya's struggles slowly faded as his blood was spilt onto the floor of the living room, pooling around him, splattering Tsubasa a top with that hot red fluid.

"STAY AWAY FROM ME!" Tsubasa screamed, fear turning to rage. "YOU COULDN'T JUST GO AWAY, COULD YOU?! YOU HAD KEEP COMING BACK!" Kyoya's struggles grew weaker and weaker, his eyes wide with terror, visage frozen in a mix of fear and anguish.

Kyoya react, standing up and making a grab for his wrists to hold him back. Kyoya's right arm is in searing pain and gushing blood. It's making his arm weak, and the gleaming knife is getting closer to his face. he can't hold him back, but at the same time Tsubasa is worried that if Kyoya push back any harder he'll hurt him. He'd rather let him kill him than hurt him.

Still, Kyoya don't want to die either, and a terror begins to creep in as he realize that Tsubasa really is trying to end his life. This wasn't an accident. If he hadn't been trying to wave him off his hand wouldn't have deflected the blade and he would have buried it in his chest.

He's laughing crazily at him, opening his glowing red eyes, but seems calm even as the muscles strain and cords stand out on his neck in his effort to push the knife into his face. He doesn't understand.

"You insane son of the bitch! What the hell did you do that for?!"

"I know everything," Tsubasa says shakily, "it would be better if you can just go away and never come back. I'm going to kill you for my pain."

"W… what?"

"It's an exchange of shadows. There are…"

The tip of the blade starts to dig into Kyoya's cheek, and he panic. he shove hard enough to make him stumble back, and suddenly he is running. His feet take him down the hall, and he slam the door of the bedroom behind him. It's only then that he realize the stupidity of this move since the door has no lock. Tsubasa brace his back against the door.

"Come back here! You wanna stab me?! YOU WANNA STAB ME, TSUBASA?! TSUBASA!" Kyoya yelled. Tsubasa's hand is throbbing now, and he wrap a random t-shirt around it that happens to be laying nearby.

I still can't believe this is happening to me. Why me? Why would I being acting like this? I almost killed him, and now he is really about to kill me?

Kyoya tries the doorknob and he press back against the door, his feet sliding on the carpet. Terror wins over confusion then, and all he can think of is survival. he can't fight back at him directly or he might hurt him again, and he'd probably kill me.

Kyoya tries the doorknob again and pushes. Tsubasa holded it shut, but his feet feel like they just have no grip on this carpet. His heart is beating so hard now he swore he can hear it. Kyoya had always been a fitness buff and nagged at him to get in shape, but he've always preferred the couch and a strong drink. He is regretting that now. The extra pounds he've packed on are going to give him a heart attack before the king of beast even has the chance to kill him.

Kyoya starts throwing himself against the door over and over. He looks wounded, but he isn't holding back at all and is hitting the door with more force than Tsubasa imagined he could. Although it's only one thump against the door at a time and it's his grunts of anger that he hear. This has to be bruising him up, and he'll break a collar bone if he keeps up this pace. The door opens an inch every once in awhile, and Tsubasa keep having to scramble to keep his back against it. He is sweating now, although more with fear than strain.

In the window across the room a face appears, looking in at him. It's the girl with the black hair and the white dress, the one Marianne Cohen named her daughter, Carol Cohen. Her black are reflecting the light and she's grinning at Tsubasa.

Madness took him then. The throbbing in his hand, the roaring of his blood in his ears, she gave herself a target for all of it. Tsubasa stood and ran at the window, screaming at the top of my lungs some crazy, incoherent thing. He have no idea what was thinking. All he could think was that maybe, if he could get her, maybe somehow Kyoya would snap out of it.

"Tsubasa, open this door!" The door's silvery knob shook violently, rattling as if locked and jostled by someone on the other side. Tsubasa stumbled back with a gasp, staring at the shuddering, alien knob.

"Let me in, Tsubasa, please! I can't stay in here! Please help me! Let me in now!"

Tsubasa dropped to his knees when his legs gave out, and he screamed when he looked at the door.

Level with the shadowy keyhole, below the rattling knob, he stared directly into Kyoya's eye. Tears shimmered in the other eye, as they shimmered in Tsubasa's. It darted around, wide and white with fear, as if searching through the hall. And then, without warning, the keyhole became shadow, and the silver knob stilled, and Kyoya on the other side of the door began to cry.

"Please, Tsubasa," Kyoya pleaded. "They're almost here."

"The Darkness?" Tsubasa whispered as a chill slithered up his spine. Kyoya sobbed quietly. Tsubasa scooted closer to the door, his fear growing colder when he from the other side didn't answer. "Kyoya?"

Silence fell, as if it had always been there. He couldn't hear Kyoya crying anymore, and even the house was too quiet behind him.

Tsubasa put his ear near the door, and held his breath.

He waited. Minutes passed — but it couldn't have been minutes.

Nothing moved. Nothing whispered. Nothing cried. Nothing stirred. He couldn't hear anything but her own racing heart. Was he gone?

"Kyoya?" He tried again, afraid the The Darkness had taken him.

"They're here..." Kyoya whispered at last, almost in his ear, as though Kyoya's lips pressed tight against the keyhole. "Please, let me in..."

Tsubasa's head ached. The world was a little fuzzy around the edges, and it was harder to focus than before. He had to stand up. He didn't dare touch the sickly door, but his legs felt too wobbly and weak to support him. He reached for the knob with a trembling hand.

"Please, Tsubasa..." Kyoya's voice was getting smaller. "Please..."

Grasping the mirror-ball knob, he pulled himself up from the floor. It moved noiselessly beneath his hand, gliding without resistance, and opened the yellow door.

A lonely expanse of normal wall inched into view, and he felt sick. He worried at his thumb in confusion, and extended a trembling hand to touch the wall behind the door. It was solid. As solid and as normal as the wall at the end of the upstairs hall should be, but his stomach churned.

He gently closed the door, which issued a soft click as the latch sprang into place, and waited. He hardly dared to move or breathe as he listened to the night, waiting for the door to speak again.

Hours passed in oppressive silence — even though it couldn't have been hours–, and the door had nothing to say. Tsubasa grew sleepy — too sleepy to keep standing. Too sleepy to remember why he was standing so still at the end of the upstairs hall. It was time to go to bed.

It's just a dream, he remembered, turning away and rubbing at his eyes. They're always dreams.

Shuffling to the bed was like swimming through Jell-O, and most of the way there he couldn't keep his eyes open. Luckily, he knew the way.

The dreams will go away like they always do.

The crimson clock was broken when he rolled hisself back in bed, its face declaring 12:16 AM to a room that only vaguely felt familiar, but he couldn't bring herself to care when his eyes and body felt so heavy.

"Tsubasa..." Kyoya whispered. But it couldn't be a whisper.

"Tsubasa," Kyoya whispered. "Tsubasa, don't wake up."

Tsubasa groaned a little.

"Don't wake up," Kyoya said, his voice echoing in Tsubasa's mind.

Tsubasa frowned, and rolled on his back. He didn't want to wake up. He wanted to stay asleep. Kyoya didn't need to tell him not to wake, because not being awake was the whole point of being asleep.

For a long time, all was silence. Tsubasa's mind drifted, and he felt himself grow lighter, as if getting ready to float up through the blackness that surrounded his. He could feel the cool sheets beneath his then, and for a moment he thought he heard the papery-thin rustle of leaves in the room.

"They're here..." Kyoya whispered at last. "Please, don't wake up..."

"Who's here?" Tsubasa wondered as he steadily rose.

His hollow face, an eerie mask. With hollow voice at doors will ask. To be invited in to bask. Above his favored midnight task.

A strange tingling worked its way up Tsubasa's body as Kyoya recited the haunting rhyme in a disconcerting monotone. Clarity inched its way toward his slowly, melting away the fog of sleep. Hadn't she been dreaming? Was he still dreaming?

Something was wrong.

They're waiting inches from your face. To be the first thing your eyes grace. But keep them shut, or else embrace. A dark shell to take your place.

Cold dread seized Tsubasa's heart with each new stanza, and he trembled with the weight of his mistake. For a moment, he swore he could feel the air stir above him, stale and strangely warm against his cheeks. Leaves rustled above the bed.

The yellow door, you always keep. The darkness follows you to where you sleep. Into your room he then will creep. Your life and dreams for him to reap.

Kyoya's voice became little more than a breath within Tsubasa's mind, and the air cooled around him when a pressure lifted from his chest.

The leaves were in the hall.

The Darkness, above your bed. With red eyes, deep slumber fed. His darkest dreams may fill your head. But never peek, or you'll be dead.

Everything was wrong.

Distantly, Tsubasa registered the sound of Gingka and his friends screaming in the living room, and felt tears sliding down his cheeks. No longer dream tears, he could feel the wet warmth as each one fell.

"...Gingka," Tsubasa whispered. "Madoka," he rasped with a voice like dried leaves.

Kyoya? He thought, but Kyoya did not respond.

Silence fell over the B-pit and Tsubasa knew nothing would ever be right again.

From the hall outside the bedroom door, Tsubasa heard the soft click as a latch sprang into place, and waited.

Silence filled the house again. The leaves were gone.

Sunlight peeked through the curtains, and the crimson clock said it was 7:45 AM before he felt it was safe enough to open his eyes and leave the room. The yellow door, with its mirror-ball knob, stared at him from the wall at the end of the upstairs hall, and the house was still too quiet. It was a different quiet than before, though, a different quiet than from his dream.

It was the quiet of a tomb.

Except, of course, for the occasional tapping, as if from tiny claws, from the other side of the yellow door.

* * *

 **OMG! That's was horrifying! Up next: Chapter 4. Now, If you like this chapter, please review. Thanks**.


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